Monday, March 31, 2014

Moose and I were out of town Friday and Saturday. When we got home Saturday night, the back door was closed, the front door was wide open, and we were nerve wracked. Also, our dog was inside (we had left him in the back yard).

I called my mom to make sure she hadn't come by, Moose grabbed his gun and started looking around. We realized that all of electronics were there, as well as our stuff. But, then, I realized my Bible, Jamaica print and some piles of things on the end table were gone. As I was declaring the missing items to my mom on the phone, she kept telling me to look for "what else had to be gone!" Moose was wandering as though he couldn't understand. Finally, we opened the back door and began to understand.

Moxie (the dog) had pushed open the back door and come in! He usually hides in the gazebo when we leave him out and it rains. Since I sold the gazebo, he didn't have anywhere to go. Apparently, he decided to come inside! Normally, when he's inside, Moxie will play with his toys and wander around. He is a generally good dog. This weekend, however, was a different story! My Bible, Bible Study book, journal, a print we bought on our honeymoon, a box of tissues, and our remote control were in the collection of items he dragged outside. (Of course, all of it was mine!!!)

Our TV Remote

We pulled the car around back to shine lights on the back yard and collect the goods. Surprise-Moxie ran out the gate at this time. While I cleaned the back yard and inventoried all of our yucky items, Moose anxiously went on a dog hunt.

Ultimately, we are grateful there were no actual burglars and Moxie's opening of the back door allowed the wind gusts to open the front door. While my "missing" things were all sentimental, the real loss was minimal. After Moxie came home, spent another night outside!!! I'm sure Moose has let him in by now; I'm still angry! Fear + the realization that our "good dog" had hauled off a pile of my thigs will do that to a girl.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

...and I know that is not nearly as exciting as "We Bought A Zoo," which is where my mind went as I wrote that title. (Just a snapshot at how Yours Truly is wired.)

Over the past few months, Moose and I have been looking for a truck for him. We didn't desperately need a car, but had just paid off some credit card debt and were looking for a way to spend a chunk of money each month and saving seemed too easy. I kid. Both of our cars were high mileage (mine wins at 240,000, but I digress), and we knew that cars are going to need replacing over the course of the next few years. Our goal is one car payment (or none) at a time, so we flipped a coin and Moose won out. As it were, he actually won out because a Toyota Celica is apparently not the most practical car for a 6+ foot grown man. My brother likes to say it's a car better suited for a 16 year old girl. We loved the gas mileage...but that's where it ended.

I would get approximately 46 emails a day with trucks in a varying degree of price, color, model, etc. Therefore, I set some parameters. I'll share:

-4 door (I feel the need to have capacity to transport people at all times)

Apparently, I asked for a truck sent by God Himself, but I didn't know how difficult these parameters would be to meet! We looked at several thousand trucks (not exaggerating) in a 100 mile radius and came to an endpass. Moose loved the Chevy Avalanche (gag) and I wanted a Ford or Dodge. I'm just not a Chevy girl.

We went to test drive a Dodge Ram yesterday when on the way, a family friend who happens to be a car dealer, text me. He had two trucks that were in or close to our range and wanted to know if we wanted to drive them. Odd, I thought, that he would randomly text when we were test driving and falling in love with a Dodge Ram (but not THAT Dodge Ram). Coincidentally, one of the trucks he had was a newer and nicer Ram with lower miles. We drove to Spartanburg...just to look. And two hours later, left with this gem:

Truly, to me, an answer to prayer. God cares about the little things-including the fact that I was on the brink of crazy if I got another email with, "what do you think of these five?" Also, that Moose and I were in total agreement over this truck is nothing short of amazement. We both tend to be fairly opinionated about....well, life.

Here we are saying bye to Penelope the Celica one last time:

So, no zoo.....but a new truck that for all of my criteria. It feels like a win to me!

Friday, March 21, 2014

Here's the thing. Lots of people don't exercise because they fear they aren't fit enough to exercise. Well, that is a silly lie we tell ourselves! Skinny people, overweight people, and everyone in between has SOMEONE more fit than them. We all feel inadequate when paired up with the wrong group.

Here are some steps to "get started" the right way:

1-couch to 5k. I am in love with this training program. You can download an app that tells you exactly what to do. You work at your own pace and move forward to being able to run a 5k. It is how I started running again and again and it's the perfect tool.

2-Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shread is a fantastic at-home DVD that is multilevel. You can start at the basic level with no weights, get through it for thirty minutes daily and you will definitely begin to see results.

3-find a workout buddy. This person does not have to be on your exact level, but they shouldn't be too far ahead. You don't want to feel inadequate at working out with them; you'll quit.

4-personally, I say work up to a class at a gym! Do some at home work. Do a DVD or couch to 5k app first. Then, you'll know your limits. There's no shame in being slower than others, but you do want to know your limits! Always ask detailed questions about the level of physical fitness required before attending a class for the first time. You don't want any surprises.

I feel that if you do these four things, you will find yourself much more "ready to get fit" in a short amount of time! Just get started!!!

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

One on one discieship has been on my heart since college and on the forefront of my mind since December! I want to share a little bit about what it is, how it works, and why I'm so passionate about it.

Why am I telling you this? First-because many of you are members of my church or community and may feel a desire to be a part of this sort of program. Let me know! Second-because it is God's command, I think it is important to educate about it. And Third-because I'm passionate about what it did for me and feel the need to tell others!

2 Timothy 2:2 says, "And the things you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will also be able to teach others." Discipleship is simply doing that! It is the Biblical method of Spiritual multiplication. The goal is for one person (Paul, in this case) to sit down and teach a couple devoted followers everything he knows. Then, those followers will take a few, etc, etc. The joy of discipleship is that no matter how spiritually mature you are (or immature), you can disciple someone who is a few steps behind you. We are all constantly growing together. It becomes a sense of accountability. If I learn about Scripture memory from my mentor and am supposed to teach/instruct my disciple on this concept in a month-I'm a whole lot more likely to memorize some verses and put the discipline into practice! It challenges you to stay a few steps ahead of your disciple for that season.

Why is it my passion? Why do I think it is crucial to the church to have a discipleship program? Well, honestly it is how I finally began to grow spiritually. You see, I accepted Christ at a young age of 6. Between the ages of 6 and 17, I had Spiritually vibrant seasons and dry seasons. There was no real logic or methodology to my growth. I would sometimes do really well and feel closeto the Lord. Other times, I was concerned that I wasn't doing something right or maybe wasn't even a believer. That all changed when I went to college. Cru, or Campus Crusade for Christ, as it was called then introduced me to the concept of one on one discipleship. Over my years in college, I had many different disciple mentors, but one thing remained-they challenged me and taught me more in my walk with Christ than I had learned in 17 years previously. I think the one on one investigation of Scripture and the Spiritual Disciplines prompted me to dive in and understand more and more-ultimately drawing me nearer to the Lord.

My sophomore year, I chose three girls to meet with and disciple. At the same time, this was the single most challenging year of my life this far. I battled depression fiercely, pushed people away, and spent many hours weeping in my bed. The story of redemption and lessons through this year is for another day, but I know that it was the accountability to lead these girls spiritually (when I had NOTHING to give of mysel) is what kept me afloat. Knowing I had to meet with them, having read a certain chapter of a John Piper book or done a certain Bible study kept me in contact with my Savior...and ultimately, the contact with my Savior is what kept me afloat.

In my married years, discipleship is something I have let go. It was harder to find someone within the church. I mean, what do you say "hi, I think you're wise in the Word. Would you mentor me weekly?" Or "I feel the Lord moving me to mentor you one on one-you game?" I kid, but that's how it felt to me. And so I avoided it until I began to meet other women with the desire to grow in this way, until 2 Timothy 2:2 hit my like a smack in the face-Megan this is My command to you. Do it. So, the other Small Group coordinators and I approached our church staff and set the ball rolling. I've written/adapted outlines for the mentor from Cru, and next week we will begin a Paul and Timothy mentor program at our church.

I am so grateful that the Lord has worked effectively on this ministry. I pray that you will find your Paul or your Timothy, and know if I can, I will help you!

Monday, March 17, 2014

In my sub class a couple of weeks ago, they told us "we will call you at 7:30 some mornings. If you want work be ready." So, we all giggled and packed up our cute notebooks and went on with our lives.

This morning, though, I get a text at 7:25. And remember, I'm still struggling with this daylight savings time thing. It's stinky. I try to get up between 7:30-8, but no alarms are really holding me to it. Anywho, the text said, "I have a sub availability in 8th grade. Can you be here? Homeroom starts at 7:50" well, why the heck not?! Lol! This girl was up, dressed (in green), lunch packed, and out the door in 10 minutes flat. I made it! My sister mentioned in first block (bc yes, I had my sister in class today-but she was a great sport) that my hair was looking "a little ratchet", but I'll take it!

Here's what I learned-some days don't exactly go as planned! My 4 loads of laundry are still unfolded. I called my mom and dad and got them to do a few favors for me that had to be accomplished today (like selling a gazebo on Craig's list for me...a story for another day), and I moved on. Other things can wait. We must learn in this life to be flexible. Substitute teaching is step one in getting me there. Just crossing my fingers I don't get a 7:30 call every day this week....but I may shower at 7 from now on just in case!

Friday, March 14, 2014

Today's guest post is brought to you by Marlee. She has begun a fitness blog called randrfitness.weebly.com! Check out her awesome tips and stories! Today's excerpt is called "Cardio Won't Cut It." Here's Marlee:

If any one is cardio's biggest fan it's me. I could run, elliptical, bike or do any cardio exercise all day like Forest Gump! It took me 8 years to realize that cardio by itself won't cut it. I wasn't going to reach the goals I had set for myself simply by running more. Now for anyone who doesn't know, cardio is short for cardiovascular. Cardiovascular exercise is also known as aerobic exercise where you're body is using oxygen and you're working at a relatively low or moderate intensity. This is different for different people. For me cardio would be my daily 6 mile run at a moderate pace but for others it could be going for a walk or jog. Depending on your fitness level and goals your cardio exercises will be different.

A huge fitness myth especially for females is that you need to do more cardio to lose weight. Sure, nothing burns more calories than going for a run but in order to burn fat and keep it off you need to also incorporate healthy eating and resistance training. So many women fear lifting heavy weights because of another ridiculous myth that lifting weights will make them "bulky". This couldn't be more wrong! As a female your body doesn't produce enough testosterone for you to become bulky without the help of steroids or performance enhancing drugs. Resistance training and weight lifting will allow you to build muscle, increase your metabolism, and burn more calories throughout the day. The more muscle you have the higher your basal metabolic rate. What that simply means is the lower your body fat and the higher percentage of muscle you have the more calories your body will burn when you aren't working out. Cardio exercises may burn tons of calories while you're doing them but weight training produces an after burn effect allowing your muscles to keep burning fat you're done working out.

A well rounded training plan should include cardio, weight training, flexibility, and healthy eating. If you incorporate all four of these into your program you'll get the lasting results you've always wanted! For so many years I thought that to be a better runner I had to just run more, no matter how fast or slow I could go. I was told more miles=faster times. Well I was putting in 50+ miles a week with no results. One reason is because most of these miles were slow easy runs just for the purpose of getting my mileage up. Jogging miles on miles on miles was in no way going to bring my 5k time down, if anything it made me slower because my body was getting so used to running so slow. I remember one week I ran 70 miles and I was so excited I'd finally accomplished that. Well the next week it was a struggle to get 40 because of how bad I was breaking down my muscles. I wasn't strong at all I just had great cardiovascular endurance. By bringing my mileage down to no more than 50 miles a week and adding weight training 4-5 days a week I've been able to avoid injury, stay energized, build muscle and take 2 minutes off of my 5k time all within a year!! Keep in mind I'm running that much because I have to for my sport. If you're just trying to improve your fitness, lose weight and get in better shape 30-45 minutes about 5 days a week of cardio is all you need! Don't overdo it or you will get burnt out and frustrated. Find exercises you enjoy doing and add variety to your training! Most importantly have fun with it and results will come! Be patient.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

So, I know the title of that post invigorates you beyond all measure! Here's the thing. I offer you a list of why I hate daylight savings time. (And I know I'm probably 1/1 who hates it...it's ok, I dare to be different.)

1. My body only likes to be awake for about 13 hours. When it's daylight savings time, those hours are 8:30a-9:30p. 8:30 is not a respectable time to come to life for an adult.

2. I like the sun to stream in my windows as I'm getting up and preparing for the day. In daylight savings time, I have to wait until approximately too late for that to be practical.

3. At about 8 p.m., I like to be in my PJs and relaxing for the evening. So, honestly it doesn't matter to me if it gets dark at 6:30 or 8:30 or anytime in between. Most likely, if I'm outside, it's at a function with the ability to turn on lighting.

4. Honestly, this is a first world problem, and I completely understand that. It's super annoying to have to reset all of the clocks in the house and car, as well as all of my watches to match my iPhone time exactly. Most frustrating is making the microwave and oven match, since they're side by side.

5. I'm not the biggest fan of change, and even the smallest changes irk me for way too long.

So there you have it. The top 5 reasons I dare to be different and prefer non-Daylight Savings Time. (That's called Standard Time, right? I don't remember). And, as a bonus #6, we aren't farmers who need extra light for the harvest (which is why DST was established). It's simply no longer necessary.

In other news, I've had a difficult time making myself get up before 8:30 this week. So, my morning routine has fallen by the wayside and my house is a disaster. I suppose I can't blame that on the time change, so off I go to remedy the situation!

Monday, March 10, 2014

On Friday, I had the opportunity to spend some time hanging out with Mrs. Roberts first grade class (my sister in law). She had asked me earlier in the week to come and make green eggs and ham for her first grade friends. Apparently, my brother has shared with her that she's not a very good egg scrambler. This may or may not have to do with the fact that she tried to pass microwaved eggs off as "yummy".

Nonetheless, I headed to WPES, electric frying pan in hand, to cook. The principal met me in the office and remembers that there is a child with a severe egg allergy directly across the hall from the room we were in and that we would need to find an alternate plan. I shared that news with Chelsea and while she asked (frantically pleaded with) her mentor teacher to borrow her room, I chatted with the friends.

First, I was shocked by how many of them remembered me from a blog Chelsea let them read several months back! They exclaimed, "you're the sister with the dogs. and you're married to moose!" Lol! Second, one little girl made sure I knew that I used to be Miss Roberts until I got married. Third, they thought it was so silly that I called "Mrs Roberts" Chelsea!

We voted on who would like green eggs and ham (only 3 said no), and then headed down to the 4K room when Chelsea returned. We cooked and ate our green eggs and ham while watching a quick Dr Seuss book on the smart board. Then, our in-school field trip ended and we headed back to Mrs. Roberts' room. As I packed up and left, the friends were writing about their green eggs and ham experience. You'll have to head over to First and Fab to find out how they liked them, but I'll share that I heard several murmurs that moms would be asked to make some of those yummy green eggs for an after school snack!

All in all it was a minorly chaotic but majorly fun afternoon visit to first grade....and the kids got non-microwaved eggs to boot. ;)

Friday, March 7, 2014

I've been saving this post because I felt a little hypocritical posting it the past two Fridays. However, now that I'm back home and getting a happy 8 hours of sleep at night-I feel perfectly comfortable posting about rest.

Here's what I've learned: rest is a crucial puzzle piece to fitness. Every training plan I've researched has "rest days" built in. These days are usually filled with yoga or stretching, if any activity, and are designed to allow your muscles to get over any fatigue you're causing them. I recently learned that novice "athletes" should build in a rest day approximately every three days, and an advanced athlete should rest at least weekly.

Additionally, sleep (and getting enough quality sleep) is crucial when attempting to become more fit. A good 8 hours allows your body to rest, heal itself, and prepare for any strenuous activity you may be building up for. I wrote the book on lack of sleep affecting you physically and have no desire to go back there! I became depressed, had issues with passing out and heart arrhythmia, and went to the doctor more times in those years of my life than ever. Sleep=healthier Megan. Healthier Megan has all of the tools to become fit Megan. That being said, I fully understand that there are seasons of less sleep in everyone's lives. I just firmly believe that during those seasons, we should be even more careful to build in rest days into our exercise schedule and be very careful with how much we do. Our bodies can only take so much!

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

The scripture tells us He will give us the desire of our hearts, right? So why do we sometimes feel that it's not coming? Why, often, do we not even know what our heart's desire is? My gut tells me that if I were to ask right now "what is your heart's desire" in my small group or Sunday school or discipleship session-most of what I would receive would be blank stares. We don't know. We don't know what we are passionate about...and those of us who do, those of us who have determined our heart's desire are confused about why we aren't receiving it!

I think to better understand this promise, we have to investigate the command that goes along with it. My dad often teaches that Scripture is full of commands with a promise. For example-an easy one-"follow Me and I will make you fishers of men." In other words, I will provide a career for you if you leave your current one and follow Me. This sort of command/promise relationship happens all the time. Our promise we are visiting is found in Psalm 37. Verses 3 & 4 are as follows:

"Trust in the Lord, and do good;Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.4 Delight yourself also in the Lord,And He shall give you the desires of your heart."

The first thing I notice is that there are a lot of commands here that we probably aren't following 100%. We may not be receiving the desires of our hearts because we aren't trusting in God, dwelling in Him, relishing His faithfulness in good and bad times, or delighting ourselves in Him and Him alone. Wow-that's quite a list. But, knowing what we know about who God is, it should be our goal and reward to follow those commands. We should be thrilled to obey and dwell in our Lord! However, for whatever reason we don't.

The second thing I notice is that we may not be using the phrase "give you the desires" properly. Is it entirely possible that if our mindset is wholly and completely on Jesus, as the commands tell us to, our desire will be whatever He wants it to be. In other words, He will place Jesus-driven desires in your heart. So, we may not be getting our desires because they aren't the ones He has placed in your heart. Also, we give blank stares because He hasn't given us our desires to long for yet...because we aren't trusting Gim and dwelling in Him.

I've thought a lot about this verse and my heart's desire/my passions lately. I wonder if these things can change. If something I'm so passionate about or that my heart desires so fully can be removed/changed to fulfil a completely different purpose. As I've studied and read, I'm finding that if I believe God is putting those desires there and fulfilling them as we obey Him, they absolutely can change. While my desire to live fully for Him is going to (should) be the root of all of my passion, the way that passion is displayed in my heart and my desires can change based on the season to which He has called me.

I think my goal in writing this post is to encourage myself and others to first follow the commands. Commit yourself daily to trust Him, dwell in His faithfulness, and delight in who He is. Then, and only then, will the true and deep desires of your heart be made known and achievable. Don't despair if you are feeling a little lost. Don't despair if you feel your passions have changed. Just know, He will place His desires in your heart if only you'll obediently allow Him to lead.

Monday, March 3, 2014

I'm back home, so hopefully, I will get back on track with publishing everyday! Today, though, is our Hebrews recap for the week!

Our Bible Study last night began with a sweet prayer time. I
had truly missed these women and their hearts! We moved into a discussion about
the homework and really differentiated between Christ and others who had gone
before Him. He is our true high priest who mediates between us and His father.
He is like none other because He has never sinned. What a joy that was to think
about!

We then went into our lesson portion, where we focused on
Hebrews 5 and 6. We heard the pastor say “GROW UP!” But, he uses the phrase
pheromai. “Let us go on to maturity” in
Greek is pheromai, which means Let Us Be Carried On. The implication here is
that we can’t make it on our own. So, he’s not saying pull yourself up by your
bootsraps. He’s saying, Let God carry you forward. 1 Cor 1:26-31 continues in
this thought.The concept is that it’s
all about the supremacy of Jesus.

There are often hills and battles that we can’t overcome on
our own; so, take heart! Jesus will carry you into maturity and over the hills.

After chastising them, he commends them for their love. He
says, though you need to mature some more—I see your love and grace.

The last section of chapter 6, verses 13-20 talk about the
curtain being torn. In order to understand what in the world is going on here,
we need to read Matthew 27:45-54! Now—if you write in your bible, jot Hebrews 6
beside vs. 51! I know that the curtain is the separation in the temple that
separates the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple. Do you remember what
was in there? The Ark of the Covanent! The word ark in Heberw actually means box.
The group did such a great job remembering their Old Testament history and
remembering what was in the box and about the Holy of Holies!

Do you remember what was in the box?

Jar of
Manna, Aaron’s staff, and pieces of stone tablets

Do you remember who got to go in the Holy of Holies and
when?

High
priest/rope/sacrifices …during yom kippor

That is the only time the curtain was allowed to be open.
BUT…during the crucifixion, that curtain was torn in two. What is so
significant about this Matthews passage that has to do with Hebrews 6? That
curtain was HUGE! It took over 300 priests to move and hang that curtain. That
is the exact specifications for the US flag that is hanging over Ground Zero!
It was as thick as a man’s hand and weighed several thousand pounds. Guys—that
happened at 3p.m. with priests standing there. Can you imagine their response?
Well…they believed in Christ!

In your book, it reminds us that the curtain ripped from top
to bottom. It implies that God himself did the rending!

The point of Hebrews 6 that we see evidences of in Matthew
is this:

We have access to our redeemer because Jesus himselftore down that separation between us and God.
We don’t have to have one person go to God for us once a year. We have access
to scoot closer to our redeemer. Jesus is our firm anchor who holds us secure
in the fiercest of storms. There are no words that can describe the supremacy
and greatness of our King…the king who ripped the curtain so that he could get
a little closer and love a little deeper with us.